Christ went to the grave for 3 days and 3 nights and then was resurrected to glory. The same happens for us except we stay in the grave until Christ returns and then are resurrected to glory at his return.
Joh 5:28 Do not marvel at this; for the hour is coming in which all who are in the graves will hear His voice
Joh 5:29 and come forth— those who have done good, to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil, to the resurrection of condemnation.
This matches with:
Dan_12:2 And many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, Some to everlasting life, Some to shame and everlasting contempt.
Even if you think what Jesus taught in Luke 16 is merely figurative, or representative of something else, would Jesus teach something using an absurd example that had no connections with reality, was false and contrary to Scripture? That would be like Jesus saying that the Kingdom of Heaven is like a rock that a man threw in a cave and it grew up and became the greatest of all camels.
Jesus did exactly that....he spoke in parables so that many would not understand. Lazarus and the rich man is a parable aimed at non-believers, Pharisees. Not at believers. In order to take it literally we would have to dismiss every other scripture (dozens and dozens) that refer to resurrections when Christ returns and death as sleep.
There are aspects of salvation that are past, present and future. The last time and the resurrection of our bodies are aspects of our salvation that are in the future. However, Scripture also speaks of eternal life in the present, as a present possession.
There are basically two aspects of salvation. Christ came the first time to "save" us from our sins. And he will come the second time to give Christians eternal life.
Heb 9:26 He then would have had to suffer often since the foundation of the world; but now, once at the end of the ages, He has appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself.
Heb 9:27 And as it is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment,
Heb 9:28 so Christ was offered once to bear the sins of many. To those who eagerly wait for Him He will appear a second time, apart from sin, for salvation.
Christ came the first time to take away sin. The second will be to give eternal life. It's a huge subject by itself.
First time:
Mat_1:21 And she will bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name JESUS, for He will save His people from their sins."
Often when God talks about being saved in the present tense in scripture he's referring to being saved from our sins...which belief in Christ should do for us. We're freed from sin.
Rom 6:22 But now having been set free from sin, and having become slaves of God, you have your fruit to holiness, and the end, everlasting life.
Rom 6:23 For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Again Christ came the first time to save us from sin. He will come the second time to give Christians eternal life.
In scripture, as far as I can tell, man never has a "spirit" other than the one given to Christians....the holy spirit. I guess Paul didn't get the memo: 1 Corinthians 2:11 New American Standard Bible (NASB) For who among men knows the thoughts of a man except the spirit of the man which is in him? Even so the thoughts of God no one knows except the Spirit of God.
The rest of the verses put this in better context:
1Co 2:11 For what man knows the things of a man except the spirit of the man which is in him? Even so no one knows the things of God except the Spirit of God.
1Co 2:12 Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might know the things that have been freely given to us by God.
1Co 2:13 These things we also speak, not in words which man's wisdom teaches but which the Holy Spirit teaches, comparing spiritual things with spiritual.
1Co 2:14 But the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.
Paul isn't teaching that man has an eternal spirit here. Just the opposite. He uses the term "spirit" of man, spirit of the world, and natural man interchangebly to contrast it with the spirit of God. The natural man cannot comprehend spiritual things.
Take care...
I wrote:
Even if you think what Jesus taught in Luke 16 is merely figurative, or representative of something else, would Jesus teach something using an absurd example that had no connections with reality, was false and contrary to Scripture? That would be like Jesus saying that the Kingdom of Heaven is like a rock that a man threw in a cave and it grew up and became the greatest of all camels.I think you missed my point in your reply:
Jesus did exactly that....he spoke in parables so that many would not understand. Lazarus and the rich man is a parable aimed at non-believers, Pharisees. Not at believers. In order to take it literally we would have to dismiss every other scripture (dozens and dozens) that refer to resurrections when Christ returns and death as sleep.
Before I state the point again, let me parenthetically say that "sleep" was a metaphor or a euphemism for death. It refers to the appearance of the body, for it says in Scripture, "Whether we are awake or asleep, we may live together with Him." (1 Thessalonians 5:10). Keep in mind that Jesus refuted the Sadducees who believed as you do that the dead cease to exist, by proving that the dead do exist: "He is not the God of the dead, but of the living; for all live to Him." (Luke 20:38)
But back to my point. Let me fully grant for 60 seconds your assumption that Lazarus and the rich man is a parable aimed at non-believers and that it is not to be taken literally. Ok. Make it about Israel and the Gentiles; whatever you want. You still did not answer my question, which is, WHY would Jesus teach something using word pictures that had no connection with reality and were moreover contrary to supposedly Scriptural teaching?
After all, there really are:
Sowers
Grains of wheat
Weeds
Fishing nets
Fig trees
Birds
Flowers
Vultures
Weather Signs
Employers
Laborer and wages
Masters and Servants
Money
Lamps
etc.
Grains of wheat are not planted in the air that grow up into giraffes.
Do you see my point? WHY would Jesus teach something in Luke 16 using word pictures that were (on your assumptions) unreal and bizarre, and supposedly contrary to Scriptural teaching?
Cordially,